Voice Lessons

Embracing the dark and the light

I had a voice lesson yesterday with a lovely teacher. It’s been quite a while since I’ve had a lesson and I forgot how vulnerable it is to open my mouth and let out sound. I grew up singing and dancing in a Idaho. My parents had a performance group they started for my brothers and me and all the local kids in town who auditioned to be a part of it. I loved K.C. and the Sunshine Kids; it was one of my favorite experiences. We sang and danced all over Southeastern Idaho and even at two World Fairs.

My dad is a perfectionist, as amazing as he is, he has a hard time hiding his expressions. I remember times singing in front of him and I’d go flat or not sound so great; and I’d notice him cringe a bit. I know he didn’t do this on purpose; and the only reason I bring this up, is because in my memory I still sometimes feel like my voice is a bit cringe worthy!

So I’m opening up my mouth to sing for my voice teacher and listening for sounds that may not be perfect. She said “just relax”. Use your breath and your soft palette and create space and openness. Having practiced and taught yoga for over 30 years, I could easily connect to my breath. The only difference with singing is you inhale through the mouth not the nose. I took a nice deep inhalation and opened my mouth and let go. I was pretty amazed at how it felt. I was back in my yogic state of learning how to make effort and find ease at the same time. I was also quite aware of how athletic singing is. I have to work on my instrument in order to create music. I move on my mat to create asanas and flows.

I was shocked when my teacher told me I had a beautiful voice and a good range. She then proceeded to tell me about chiaroscuro, the combination and balance of bright, forward resonance and dark, colorful resonance. Now this is where it gets really fascinating I think. Each one of us has the ability to unite a darker, deeper sound with a lighter brightness. The union of light and dark, the yin and the yang, the day and the night, all of this is also a part of singing.

I personally, tend to move away from the dark and prefer to stay positive and light; but we are all such complex, unique individuals. When we embrace our dark side, we offer a much more well rounded version of ourselves. Yoga and meditation, in my opinion, helps us connect to all of our emotions and thoughts without judgment. We let go of the samskaras (mental impressions, recollections, or physiological imprints) in our minds and bodies and start to create new patterns and grooves. Every lesson, whether it is a vocal lesson, piano lesson, cooking class or even a puzzle, can help us grow and think and feel outside of the box or outside of the limitations we put on ourselves.

As we continue to practice yoga, running, Pilates, or anything that helps us get to know ourselves better; we create opportunities to embrace our darkness and our light. We have a history inside of us that doesn’t need to be hidden. We also have a future ahead of us that can be full of light. When we combine the two we land in the middle, in the present, in our center and we create magical, meaningful moments.

I absolutely love my dad and his not so subtle honesty. I also love my mom who tends to go the opposite direction and tell me everything is amazing. We honestly need the both. We can’t go through life, without feedback that can sometimes bruise our ego; but we also have to put ourselves out there so we can learn and fail forward. We need the critic and the confident coach in our ears; and it’s just about learning to balance the two in all that we do.

Just for fun here is a clip of me singing at a Country Fair in Southeastern Idaho with our Sunshine Kid group!